A Dance We Do
by Dee9
Summary: Jarod takes Parker on a Pretend,While Raines sends a dangerous man to kill them Part 1
1. Default Chapter

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A Dance We Do

By: Dee

Beta read by Dianne

Disclaimer: 

The Centre, Blue Cove, Delaware 

Tech Room 

A box had just arrived for Miss Parker and she was not pleased, for it was from Jarod

"Oh goodie, I get to learn more about what perversion my family has been up to. I wonder if it could upstage a cannibal psychotic serial killer as a brother or a murdered mother. Maybe Daddy has a secret brotherhood that eats babies," said a snide Miss Parker.

"He does?" Broots asked, his eyes wide.

"Listen, geek boy, get back to that keyboard before I choke you," snarled Miss Parker.

"Parker, aren't you going to open it?" Sydney tried to hide the amusement in his voice; they reminded him of two children squabbling over a toy.

She picked up the box and was about to open it then thought better of it and tossed it over to Sydney. "He's your labrat and I swear if it has anything to do with Asian women or dead things, I'm going to shoot your labrat's kneecaps right off him. "

Sydney gave her a small smile and shook his head as he slowly opened the bright blue and orange colored box. All eyes were on Sydney as he slowly pulled out a worn teddy bear and an old newspaper clipping, which was quickly snatched away from him by Miss Parker. As she read it, her face turned pale then she took a deep breath and handed the clipping back to Sydney.

The clipping was from an old newspaper and was about the disappearance of a five-year-old boy by the name of Danny Whiteside; stamped on the side of the paper was a code number.

Sydney shot Miss Parker a questioning look.

She slowly shook her head. "When I used to go to look for Jarod, I had to pass Raines freak labs. I saw this boy in there, but that was 22 years ago."

Sydney's voice sounded almost panicked as he asked, "What was he doing to him?"

"Who knows what that burnt, oxygen sucking corpse was doing." She gave a little huff, "Well, at least this freak show isn't a member of the Parker family. That's a first for Jarod."

"Parker, there's one last thing in the box from Jarod, it's addressed to you." Sydney stated matter of factly.

"God, I knew it was too good to be true. Hand it over, Sydney, with my luck, I'll find out the freak of the week is a half brother." Parker's voice dripped with sarcasm.

Sydney reached in and pulled out a ring box with a note taped to the bottom and handed it to Miss Parker. She gingerly opened the box, exposing a thin gold band with a diamond in the center. She knew instinctively that it was her mother's engagement ring. She closed the box and slipped it into her jacket pocket after removing the note. She then opened the note and read:

Dear Miss Parker,

I am sending you your mother's engagement ring. I wonder what she would say about this dance of denial that we do and how we have to hide our growing love. Have you ever been to a carnival, my dear Miss Parker? Maybe I'll see you there, three days from when you receive this. 

Jarod.

P.S. I know that your love for me will make you run to my side.

Parker folded the note back up and slipped it into her jacket pocket beside the box with mother's ring.

"Moron." She murmured then said in a louder voice, "Well, Dr. Dolittle, it seems that your labrat has found a fitting place for himself with the rest of the mutations of Earth. We're going to a carnival, aren't we lucky?"

Brooks spoke out, his voice filled with excitement, "A carnival! Do you think I could bring Debbie?"

Miss Parker's eyes turned to frost. "No, this isn't a pleasure trip, although I can see that you'd fit right in, but right now, you have a job to do. I want you to find all the carnivals..." She stopped mid sentence and a sparkle of knowledge graced her eyes. She walked over to the box and pulled out the teddy bear, she turned the teddy bear around and hidden beneath a patch of fur was a key; she wound it.

The tinkling of music softly played, it took a minute for Parker to recall the tune – 'We've only just begun' then Jarod's voice rang out. "Hi, Miss Parker, Sydney and Broots, I hope you can make it. Miss Parker holds the key to my heart and Sydney you're right, the Rolling Stones are cool. Broots, you should see all the games they have here, I hope Debbie can make it, Parker used to love games when she was Debbie's age."

Parker unceremoniously dropped the bear and ordered Broots, "Come on, geek, you heard the labrat. Look for carnivals in Pennsylvania, the Keystone State." She looked over at the teddy bear and softly speaking to herself, said, "Could you make this any easier? What are you up to, Jarod?"

"Broots, check on the missing rugrat Danny Whiteside. Try the code first."

Broots looked up from his terminal uneasily and asked, "Um, Miss Parker, which should I do first?"

"I'm surrounded by idiots and they want to know why I can't catch the labrat. The labrat comes first, Broots. As for the missing kid, he was turned into a pet project twenty-two or twenty-three years ago by that oxygen sucking weasel, I think he can wait. I wonder what sick twisted monster Raines turned him into." A small shudder swept through her tall, slender frame.

Somerset, Pa

Brightly colored banners littered Town Street. People dressed in every custume imaginable crowded the walkways and four wooden stages were erected off to the far right. Applause rippled through the crowd as a well-built man with dark hair and flashing brown eyes dressed in a black tuxedo bent over. Straightening himself back up, he smiled then pulled a white rose from his jacket and tossed it into the crowd of onlookers who scrabbled towards it only to have a young, dark haired girl flash it in the air, signaling that she was the lucky one. A tall, lanky blonde dressed only in a skimpy blue sequined swimsuit smiled brightly from the stage and gave the man a kiss on his cheek to a thunderous applause. The sign in front of the wooden stage read Jarodco The Marvelous.

The long legged blonde was still attached to Jarod's arm as they walked back to his small, single trailer. "You were wonderful." Tracy said passionately as she ran her hand up and down his chest, feeling the hard planes of his body underneath the tuxedo. Jarod grabbed her hand and held it still as they entered the trailer together.

The trailer was small with a single pull out bed, a small table and two chairs. The only things on top of the table were Spiderman comic books, four Pez candies, a deck of cards, a framed photo of Miss Parker, which had been taken from her home and a single red rose tinged in white, lying in front of her photo.

Tracy walked over and picked up Parker's photo. "She's really not that pretty and what kind of woman would let a man like you go anywhere alone?" She purred as Jarod walked calmly over and took the photo from her hand, placing it back in its proper place. He only gave her a Cheshire cat like smile and leaned over; sensually breathing into her ear, he whispered. "The Ice Queen." He smiled again. "I think I'm going to rest a little bit before the next performance."

Tracy smiled. "I'll come back later to wake you up." Her tone was low and sensual. 

Jarod placed his hand on Tracy's back and gently escorted her out, locking the trailer door behind her then he grabbed his computer and rewound the avi that Angelo had sent him two nights ago.

Jarod sat fascinated as the drama replayed before his eyes. It showed Mr. Parker's office now occupied by Lyle, who was rocking nervously in his father's chair, opposite sat Raines in a wheelchair, hooked up to his oxygen. He looked decayed, as if death itself wouldn't touch him, his skin was puckered where the fire had burned off his flesh and it had been replaced by skin grafts. Raines leaned forward in his wheelchair, "Danny will take care of Miss Parker and her annoying friends. He'll be easier to handle in about three days time. He's a little bit excited."

Jarod could almost feel Lyle's sickening smile. "Your pet monster, Raines, and it can't be linked back to me. I want my sister to die really slow and I want it taped. She can't go running to dear old Daddy, may the old bastard rot in hell and she's getting to be to like dear old Mommy, sticking her nose in where it doesn't belong. I only wish that we could make a clean sweep of it and get Jarod too."

The old man in the wheelchair coughed. "We'll keep monitoring them, if Jarod isn't found within killing distance of Parker and cohorts then we'll just kill his sister, I know where she is. Then he'll come to us." The picture faded, leaving only a blank computer screen.

Jarod leaned back and picked up a red notebook. He opened it and headlines screamed out at him. 27-year-old magician dies of an overdose. Mr. Williams was found yesterday in his trailer. He was in a drug-induced coma and died shortly before police reached the scene. Mr. Ted William's was best remembered as being the only child taken by convicted murderer Charles Holt that survived. Jarod flipped the pages. 

This pretend wasn't what he'd planned. He was sure that there were two people involved instead of one. Jarod closed the folder and laid it back in his case and before closing the case, he retrieved Catherine Parker's wedding ring and staring deeply into it's facets, came up with a plan. He smiled, he'd already started the ball rolling; everyone knew that his ice queen was coming and he had plans for her, that was if she didn't kill him over it. Jarod shook his head, five years of hiding and running from her, only to realize that he loved her.

Jarod picked up the small paperback of Murphy's Law in his case and started to read. 

Chapter three

USX building

Downtown Pittsburgh, Pa

A helicopter approached and landed on the heliport pad and the three occupants exited the craft. First one to exit was Miss Parker, a tall, leggy brunette, wearing tight fitting black clothes and high-heeled shoes, Sydney was the next one out, he was wearing a dark blue business suit, he stopped half way down the steps and removed the jacket, tossing it over his arm, Broots was the last one out, he was dressed in a Hawaiian top and matching shorts. Each one carried a small carry-on bag and Broots was also carrying his laptop computer safely stored in its black case.

Parker's heels clicked on the roof's pavement and as she walked, she scratched her arms. She couldn't believe how Lyle had run out of the complex and gave her a huge hug goodbye; she wondered vaguely if she had fleas now. She shuddered at the thought of him touching her. Something was wrong, she couldn't quit put her finger on it, but she would, given a little time.

Sydney heard the ringing of his phone as the helicopter rose into the air and left. He unhooked the phone from his belt. "Jarod, it's nice to hear from you." His voice was soothing. "Do you know that we're here in downtown Pittsburgh?"

"I know, Sydney, I'm glad you're here. Is Parker with you?" Jarod asked.

"Yes, Jarod, she's here." Sydney gave a little knowing smile.

"Sydney, if you every really cared about me, Broots and Parker, you have to listen. Lyle has sent someone named Danny to kill Parker, Broots and you. Raines trained him under the name Desert Hawk... Sydney, are you there?" Jarod seemed a little rushed.

"Yes, Jarod. So, what do you want me to do?" Sydney closed his eyes and took a deep breath, so Danny was alive, Parker was right; no one ever really died at the Centre.

"I want you to come to Somerset, Pa. Follow the signs to the carnival up here. It's an hour and seven minutes from where you are - Take I-76 east to exit 10 then take the 601n to 281north, you'll run into Elmo's Light Store, go in there. I'll have costumes waiting for you," Jarod's voice switched into an authoritative mode. 

"Jarod, you may have trouble with Parker, you know how she hates to be told what to do or to trust anyone beside herself." Concern echoed in Sydney's voice.

Jarod laughed. "I'll deal with the ice queen. Just hurry, we have some plans to make and I have to finish this pretend sooner than I thought."

"We'll be there in an hour and seven minutes. Jarod, take care," said a concerned Sydney, he was met with silence then after a short pause, he heard.

"I will, Sydney. Take care of Parker." And the phone went dead.

Sydney closed his phone and hooked it back onto his belt. 

Broots clumsily made it over to Sydney. "Jarod?" Broots whispered, almost scared that Parker would overhear.

Sydney gave Broots a pat on his arm. "Yes. It's okay, Broots, Miss Parker is probably halfway out the building by now."

Broots felt a rush of relief flood his system.

As they started tracing her steps, Broots seemed to have a hard time getting his voice back. "D-does Pa-Parker know that you talked with Ja-Jarod?"

"No, not yet. I'll tell her in the car." Sydney smiled as he placed a protective arm around Broots.

"Y-you don't think she'll sh-shoot Jarod, do you?"

Sydney smiled as he dug around in his pocket and came out with the firing pin to her gun. "You never know and with Parker it's better safe than sorry, especially since she's having a hard time trying not to love him."

That stopped Broots in mid step. "Parker and Jarod." He gave a low whistle. "Sydney, I would have never guessed, most of the time she's trying to bring him in or threatening to shoot him and he's always yanking her chain. Wow, Parker and Jarod." He whistled again and shook his head. "Boy, life is sure complicated."

Sydney smiled. "Yes, my friend, life is complicated. We'd better get to the rental before Parker leaves without us."

By the time they made it to the rental car, Parker was sitting behind the wheel, beeping the horn. She yelled at them, "Will you two hurry up! What do I look like? Cab service? And for the love of God, Broots, wipe that stupid grin off your face, you look like a moron."

"Yes, Miss Parker." Broots whispered as he got into the back seat, while Sydney took the front seat beside Parker, both buckling themselves in.

Sydney reached over and touched Parker's arm. "Jarod called, he's in Somerset. I have the directions."

Parker's mouth dropped open.

"Before you say a word I promised him that we wouldn't bring him in." Sydney spoke to her in a fatherly manner. 

"Are you nuts? Listen, Dr Frankenstein," Parker stressed the point by grabbing Sydney's shirt, her eyes flashing and her voice low and dangerous, "You know yourself that your little labrat will tire and run underground. Then, Daddy Higgins, neither of us will ever see him again."

"Parker just drive, I'm going to tell you something that you're not going to like." Sydney's face seemed to cloud over.

Parker wished that she had a drink and for the first time in her life, she drove at the speed limit.

"It started when Jarod was just a kid and I was working with him. Raines was working on other projects, one with a child named Danny. I later found out that Raines was working on an ultimate soldier, a killing machine. Using drugs, he killed off nerve endings, thereby destroying pain and by destroying parts of the brain, feelings. Danny was 12 when I first saw him. He was completely still, until Raines told him to do something. Just like an animal, he'd fetch and kill. I thought he had died a long time ago." Sydney stopped talking.

Parker turned her eyes from the road for a brief moment, "Oh God, Raines sent him after Jarod, didn't he?"

"No, Lyle and Raines sent Danny after you, me, Broots and Jarod. Danny will go after the strongest first and that's you and Jarod."

"This just keeps getting better and better. A guy with the IQ, personality and emotions of a dipstick is going to try to kill us and he was sent by my sadistic brother and death warmed over uncle who make the SS look like boy scouts. My family gives me such a warm tingly feeling I could just beat them to death with a baseball bat. I wish Wonderboy was here." Parker said then quickly added, "So I'd know the odds on all of us surviving this nightmare."

They made it in record time to Somerset only stopping twice, once because of Broots who bitterly complained that he was going to pee himself if they didn't and once at a liquor store for a bottle of vodka, which was now just a memory. Parker had refused to share and had consumed it herself by the time the trio hit Elmo's. Parker fortified her resolve with booze while Broot's shivered and shook with fear, Sydney resigned himself to any fate that befell him.

Sydney was always impressed by the way, drunk or not, Parker held herself. If it weren't for the occasional blow up of her raw emotions or just the tiniest twitch of her right eye, you would never know that she drank. She held herself in tight control as she descended on the store clerk, only to watch as the clerk giggled the way teenagers do as she handed Parker a huge package filled with the costumes that Jarod had chosen for them. Broots was a clown, Sydney was an eighteenth century gentleman and Parker refused to put hers, a tiny French maid's uniform, on and announced that Jarod needed a sex life or a 1-900 number to keep him busy.

No one heard Jarod enter the store; he just seemed to appear. Sydney was the first to spot him leaning against the back wall of the store, wearing a tuxedo with a white flower in his lapel. Jarod leaned back, arms crossed, a large child-like smile gracing his lips; a medium size white bag rested on the floor next to him.

Sydney was now dressed in full costume and he smiled back at Jarod. Miss Parker stood next to Sydney, but her attention was on Broots who had just exited the bathroom waving a rubber chicken in front of him and proudly proclaiming about the rubber toy that he'd found in the pocket of the costume. As Sydney walked pass Parker, he grabbed the gun from her back holster.

Sydney and Jarod embraced then pulled apart. Sydney patted Jarod's arm and handed him Parker's gun. "You look good, Jarod." Sydney told him. 

Jarod was still smiling "Freedom agrees with me, Sydney." Jarod stated, but his eyes were looking straight at Parker, who made a move to grab her nonexistent gun. Her eyes never left Jarod's as he held the gun up for her to see then with a flick of his wrist, the gun disappeared.

Sandy, the teenager who manned the cash register, was all eyes as Jarod smiled at her and gave her a nod. She quickly closed up her register and walked over to Jarod, giving him a warm smile and a little wave as she walked to the front of the store and exited, locking up behind her. 

Sydney moved to one side as Parker, gripping the maid's outfit, came charging up to Jarod in a fury. She didn't stop, but pressed her body right into Jarod's. She leaned into Jarod, her breath falling on his ear and in her most intimidating voice said, "I'd rather go naked than wear that." Then she pushed the outfit into his hand.

Jarod got an amused grin on his face and turned his head towards hers, their faces only a fraction apart, their eyes locked. "Are you propositioning me, Parker?"

Her eyes widened in disbelief as she pulled back from him.

"I'm extremely honored, Miss Parker, but we really don't have the time right now, but I do plan to take you up on your offer later."

Jarod grabbed the white bag and pressed it into her hands. "This is more you, Parker, and if you don't put it on, I'll do it for you."

"You wouldn't dare." She hissed.

He only smiled "I'm an labrat, you said so yourself, Miss Parker, a pretender, do you want to take the chance?"

Parker moved slightly away from Jarod then spun around, her eyes flashed and narrowed as she dropped the bag to the floor, her hands going to her hips. "What game are you playing now, wonder boy? What hoops are you going to have us jump through? Maybe the two trusting stooges dressed up like social retards over there are willing to play your twisted little games, but I'm not playing. You told Sydney about Danny just to scare us, to prove that the Centre was so evil. What? You have another roach motel hidden in the backroom or is this one of those social soul saving techniques? Whatever it is, it's not going to work."

For a minute, Jarod looked stunned then he reached into his pocket and tossed a disk at Broots who caught it. Jarod's eyes never left Parker's. "Play it, Broots."

Broots, with his big clown shoes, made it over to the side of the building by the bathroom where he had tossed all his clothes. He grabbed up his computer case and taking his laptop out, pushed in the disk Jarod gave him and slowly walked back over to where Jarod and Sydney were standing. Broots looked back and forth, wondering what to do, but both Parker's and Jarod's eyes were trained on each other. He was about to say something, but Sydney stopped him by putting his hand up and motioning for him to play the disk. 

As the disk played, Parker recognized the speakers and her gaze shifted from Jarod to Broots' computer. Her skin paled as Lyle talked about her torture and how he wanted it videotaped. A chill ran through her then first stab of pain from her ulcer kicked in. The pain showed in her eyes as they sought out Sydney's and then Jarod's.

"The hug from Lyle was a tracking devise, that's why the clothes change." The next wave of pain hit, causing Parker to stumble a little. "Jarod, get them out of here and leave me my gun. Sydney, that firing pin you took out had better be there." The world started to fade and her body started to shake, at first, she thought that it was an earthquake then she realized it was her own body.

Jarod saw Parker's skin pale, the tiny beads of sweat and the pain in her blue eyes then he noticed the shaking in her limbs and the rapid breathing. The words she spoke were in a childlike, weak voice as she strained to overcome an onslaught of pain. He bounded over to her and holding her slender frame up, yelled at her, "Parker! Parker!" With his other hand, he grabbed the edge of her neckline and tore off her top.

"Sydney, help me get her undressed and into her costume, it's easier to hide in plain sight." Jarod said as he tenderly placed her on the floor and quickly took her pulse. Sydney tore into the bag and brought out a sparkling 1920's outfit and hat, the short wig he left as he helped Jarod undress and then redress Parker.

Sydney frowned. "Damn it, Parker, why can't you just listen and take care of yourself?" Jarod picked up Parker in his arms and Sydney helped him pull her up so that her head rested on his shoulder.

Jarod ordered, "We'd better get going, leave your clothes and everything, but your computer here, my van's outside. I'll drive. Broots, the front door is locked from the inside so just pull the slide up and check outside for us."

Broots almost tripped over his clown shoes as he sprinted to the front door and opened it, after five minutes, he came back to the doorway and waved them on. As Jarod got to the door, he placed Parker in Sydney's arms and fished around for his keys. When they reached the van, Jarod took the driver's seat while Broots helped Sydney get into the back with Parker and then sat down alongside them.

Jarod turned around a couple of times, watching Sydney cradle Parker and gently rock her back and forth like a parent with a child. After they were about fifteen minutes away, Jarod couldn't stop himself from asking, "Sydney, how is she?" 

Sydney stared at the back of Jarod's head. "A lot of things contributed to this; Parker hasn't been sleeping well, she's hardly eaten anything in four days, stress, her ulcer, the drinking. She just had a minor flair up, but her pulse is back to normal and she seems to be sleeping now."

"Sydney, I didn't cause this, did I?' Jarod asked, his voice full of pain.

"No, there's a lot going on at the Centre, a lot of pain and she's afraid to trust anyone."

"I know the feeling," Jarod said, his voice filled with spite. 

"So, Jarod, what would you prescribe for your patient?" Asked Sydney, playing at an old game that had started thirty years ago and one that Jarod felt comfortable with.

"Miss Parker should have rest, be placed on a bland diet and given Tagiment." He answered back

"Good answer, Jarod, now all you have to do is tell that to Miss Parker when she wakes up." smiled Sydney.

Jarod couldn't help but laugh, "Coward."

"Let's just say, Jarod, that I'm a man who knows my limitations." Sydney stated with a smile.

"We're here, it's a little bit small, but I really wasn't expecting guests," Jarod told them as he got out of the van and opened up the back. Sydney and Broots stretched as they got out, leaving Jarod to pick up Parker. Jarod walked up to the front door of the trailer and with a well-placed kick, opened the door. He went straight over to the single bed and lay Parker down on it. Staring intently at her face, he tenderly brushed away an errant hair and wondered briefly how something that looked like a beautiful angel when asleep could turn into such a wildcat when awake. His hand was still on her face and only a few coughs coming from Sydney, brought him back from his reverie. 

As Broots finally got into the trailer, he remarked. "Boy this is small," and looked around to find somewhere to sit. Jarod only had to turn around and take two steps to be in front of Sydney and Broots. Jarod motioned for them to follow him outside as he led the way. He led them to another trailer directly behind his own. As he opened the door, they entered a small oasis of magic. 

The interior of the trailer was aligned with fun mirrors, each distorting reality. Broots looked into each one of them, watching himself growing taller and skinner or fat and robust, at each mirror he stopped and waved. The single bed was pulled out and the covers tossed around indicating that Jarod spent most of his time there. Magic equipment lined the far side, leaving only enough space for the narrow bed and place to walk, but it was the table that Sydney was drawn to. On it was beautifully done clay figures, which hung from a huge clay replica of the center. The main character was Miss Parker, her figure was perfect and she was dressed as a delicate ballerina, next to her was a man and he knew at once it was Jarod for the figure's outfit, down to the leather vest was perfect, but his face was a mask. On the other side of Miss Parker was a wretched looking man - her father and next to the Jarod figure was himself and Broots, but next to Parker's father was Raines who was depicted as a skeleton.

Sydney was in awe of the beautiful ballerina; her hands were outstretched to both her father and Jarod; the figure of her father looked away, his hand out like a king while the figure of Jarod showed both hands reaching for the ballerina. Jarod grabbed up the piece and with a nervous smile, opened a drawer and tossed it in. "Just something to play with, it's cool working with clay." Sydney looked deep into Jarod's eyes and what he saw in them pained his heart. The innocence within them was dying. Was this a cleverly planned pretend or being on the run for five long years? Sydney prayed not for both Jarod's and Miss Parker's sake.

"Sydney, you can keep an eye on Parker, I'll stay here with Broots." Jarod said.

"No, Jarod, I will be quite content here. I really don't want to force you out, plus Miss Parker will be in capable hands in case her ulcer gets worst." Sydney said thoughtfully. If this were a pretend then Jarod would have to face Parker and watch the toll it took on her when she learned the truth and if he really loved her, it wouldn't hurt for them to spend some time together.

Jarod slowly made his way back to his trailer, stopping for a minute to watch the sun set. The last of the crowd were leaving for the night. According to Angelo, Jarod and Parker only had one more day before Danny was calm enough to send after them. Lucky for them, the deadline had been pushed back another day. 

As soon as he opened the trailer door, he knew she was up; he could sense her and before he could move, he was grabbed by the lapels and pulled into the trailer then the door slammed shut behind them. Parker still held his lapels, her breathing rapid. "I want to know what in the hell is going on, Jarod." She said as she pushed him backwards. She looked like a true ice queen; her skin was pale, her eyes huge and blue and the 1920's dress glittered like a thousand diamonds on her slim frame. He wondered why she seemed so slim and fragile then he noticed that she wasn't wearing her four-inch stiletto heels.

"Well, Boy wonder, how much time do we have?" her voice sounded tired.

"Tomorrow night." he answered her softly.

"Is there away for you to hurry up this goody two shoes routine of yours?" She asked.

"There is a way, but it would involve your help." His eyes bored into hers.

Parker seemed to be weighing everything before she answered. "God, I have taken one step beyond, right into the twilight zone. I'll help under the following conditions: I get my gun back, I promise not to shoot you no matter how tempting and most important of all, I get some real clothes." Parker stuck out her hand. "Deal?"

Jarod smile and in a western accent said, "It's a deal, little lady." Jarod grabbed her outstretched hand, brought it to his lips and kissed her knuckles, his eyes sparkling in merriment. 

Parker rolled her eyes. "Definitely the twilight zone."

"Well, since your playing," her eyes came to rest on a Spiderman Pez dispenser, "Spiderman, I'm going to do some real work. Can I have my cell phone back?"

Jarod walked over to his brown leather jacket, retrieved Parker's phone he tossed it over to her. "Here you go, Mary Jane Watson." 

Parker just looked at him blankly and shook her head. Working with Broots and Sydney could be trying enough, but working with Jarod was going to be downright impossible.

Parker opened her cell phone and pushed a speed dial button. The phone on the other side was picked up on the third ring. "Sam." 

"Sam, it's Parker. I want you to call me every time the helicopter or company plane is used, I want to know who's on it and its destination and go to Broots' house and take Debbie over to my house." Parker terminated the call without waiting for any response then pushed another button.

The phone this time was answered on the first ring. "Lyle here."

"Lyle, it's Parker."

"Chasing your little lab experiment, sis? I hope this time you're competent enough to catch him." Lyle said snidely. 

"I'm closing in. I should have him in two days. Cover for me?" Parker kept her tone neutral while her thoughts were anything but as she thought, 'So that if I live through this I can strangled you with my bare hands, dear brother, or show you how to really use your little torture chamber.'

There was a long pause. "Two days, sis, that's all I can give you before I send the sweepers in." Then he hung up.

Parker closed her phone and tossed it on the small table, almost knocking her photo down. Jarod was hovering over her as Parker gazed up. "We'll be told when any of the Centre's planes or helicopters leave. Lyle didn't ask, so that means he knows where we are and since they want you dead too, they're willing to wait an extra two days from now to catch us all together. I need a drink, a large one."

Parker grabbed her shoes and slipped them on, she got up and crossed in front of Jarod, stopping at the front door to say, "I'm going to check on Sydney and Broots, see if they learned anything else on this Danny. Then we can all have a morning meeting and collate all the information we've gathered. She glanced over at Jarod, but he had already picked up his red notebook and was studying it, oblivious to her or the world around him.

Parker wondered briefly what in the hell she had gotten herself into.

*****

The trailer out back 

Broots was lying on his back on the single bed, wearing underwear with horses on them and still wearing the clown shoes from the costume. Sydney was lying on a blow up airbed on the floor beside Broots. Neither of them could sleep.

"Sydney, all the weirdness around us and Jarod is courtesy of Mr. Skin Grafts himself and now a killer is after us. I'm seriously thinking about quitting." Quipped Broots.

Sydney smiled, "It is harder to quit than you know, my friend."

Sydney had just finished that thought when the door was swung open so hard that it hit the wall. Broots jumped, but Sydney only smiled and pulled himself up into a sitting position. "Miss Parker."

Parker marched right in and stood with her hands on her hips. "Okay, Sydney, I want to know everything you know about Danny."

"I told you everything." His eyes looked deeply into hers.

"Syd, how is it that half the time you don't have a clue and the other half you know everything?" Parker frowned. 

"Survival, Miss Parker. How many secrets and lies do you know? If I knew any more about Danny, I'd tell you." His voice was earnest.

Broots eyes grew wide as he listened, "Oh. Ah. I'm going to go back to sleep." He started to lie back down only to have Miss Parker reach down, grab him by his underwear and pull him back up from the bed. She placed her face next to his and fear glittered in his eyes. Her voice dripping with poison, she told him, "First, you're going to help me find out exactly what is going on and who Danny is."

"How do you expect me to do that?" he asked shakily.

"Who knows all the dirty secrets? Whose experiment is Danny?" She quizzed. 

Sydney's eyebrow shot up. "Raines."

"Score one for Dr. Doolittle. Broots, you are going to hack into his archives and search for any references to Danny boy." Parker said as she let Broots go.

"Are you crazy? Oh God! You mean it. If he catches me hacking in, he'll…" Broots took a big gulp.

Parker pulled him close again. "He'll kill you, Broots, news flash he is already planning to, remember Danny boy?"

Broots pulled away and grabbed his laptop computer. "Um, Miss Parker, I need a power source."

"Well, look around for one and I don't mean play with anything. I'll be back around 6:00am for a briefing and Broots if you want your little horses intact you'd better have something good." With that, Miss Parker turned to Sydney. "Tomorrow we are going out and getting some real clothes."

Parker stepped back out into the night, quickly surveying the area; only Jarod's two trailers were still lit. She made her way to the other trailer. When she entered the door, she was shocked; the papers that had been in the red notebook lay scattered about and a Sim of Jarod as a young child with Sydney played in background. A mannequin lay on the bed, a pillow part way over its face. Jarod was standing next to the mannequin absentmindedly playing with a yo-yo 

Parker looked at the DSA and came up with an idea; her eyes swept over the area where it lay, but the rest of the discs weren't there. If she grabbed the DSA while he wasn't paying attention and ran with it, she could call Sam to have her picked up by the Centre. She'd return it and they'd call off Danny. They wouldn't dare hurt them at the Centre. She made a couple of small steps towards it only to have Jarod's voice stop her.

"Don't even think about it, Parker." 

Parker took a step back. "The only thing I'm thinking about is sleep so why don't you get your girlfriend out of my bed, Labrat?" Parker yawned. She could make her move once he was asleep. She didn't see Jarod's hand go into his pocket as he approached her.

"You're right we could all use some rest, especially you. How is your ulcer, Parker?" Jarod asked; he stood right in front of her, the heat of his body warming hers. Then she felt a sting in her arm. 

"You son of a bit..." Was all she managed to say before her body went limp and she fell into his arms.

Jarod eased her down onto the floor and started picking up everything and putting them in secure places. He had done the sim enough to his satisfaction for the past couple of days and this was his final check before he could finish his pretend. He pulled out the blow-up bed and used a pump to fill it with air, he popped a few Pez in his mouth and after it was finished pumping up, tossed some blankets and a pillow on the air mattress. Then he picked up Parker and placed her on it, he slid off her shoes, took out a pair of handcuffs and snapped one onto her wrist. He then lay down beside her and since the air mattress was narrow, eased Miss Parker on top of his chest and snapped the other side of the handcuffs to his own wrist. Now he could sleep without having to keep an eye open. She was so soft and warm. Jarod wrapped his arms around her, closed his eyes and fell asleep.

Parker was having a dream, which cut through the murky drug induced sleep. She watched her mother step into the elevator and she tried to scream out to for her to stop, but she couldn't, all she could do was watch. Then the scene shifted to Jarod in a plastic ball pleading with Sydney that he couldn't do it, there was no air he couldn't save them. Then the dream switched to Thomas covered with blood. She couldn't do anything; she wanted to hide, to make everything go away.

Suddenly she heard her mother's voice. "It's okay, baby, it's okay. You can trust Jarod." Then the scene shifted again. She was a little girl and Jarod was holding her, Faith had just died. She could feel his warmth and caring, she felt so warm, so secure. In her dream and in reality, she gripped Jarod tighter and buried her face in his chest.

"Parker?" Jarod awoke as her arms tightened around him. He knew that she was still a sleep. "Parker?" He tightened his arms around her and she seemed to settle down. 

Then in a soft voice she said, "I love you, Jarod."

Jarod gave a small smile and closed his eyes. "I love you too, Andrea Louise Parker."


	2. a dance we do part two

****

A Dance We Do

By: Dee

Beta read by Dianne

The Centre

The huge man sat in the small cell; his chest and arms were a patchwork with pieces of flesh missing where it had been pared off. He sat motionless except for the movement of his chest rising and falling; pictures of Parker and Jarod were laid out before him. The stench of infection filled the small room as Lyle and Raines entered and Lyle pulled out a handkerchief and placed it over his nose and mouth, this was one time he envied Raines with his oxygen tank. The thing in front of him was monstrous and looked like something from a horror show instead of a man, he had to admit that even at his worst, Raines truly outranked him. Lyle broke the silence to get things started so that he could get out of the room faster.

"How do you know he's excited, he looks vulgar and deceased to me and that stench," Lyle managed to choke out, but even through the handkerchief, he could almost taste it. 

"He's not responding the way I want him to, his movements are too slow. I must have taken too much skin from him for my grafts. He has an infection of the underlying tissue." Raines said clinically as he peered closer at the man's condition.

"Well, at least he has hair." Lyle found humor in thinking of the old man trying to figure out where he could take more skin from.

Evil sunken eyes bored into Lyle before Raines answered, "You've been hanging around your sister too long. I'm going to fill him up with some more antibiotics to kill the infection, it should keep him going until our problems are solved, afterwards we'll stop the antibiotics and let him die; he'll have served his purpose." 

"You're right, there's not too much skin left to pilfer from him. So we'll give them the two extra days?" Lyle spoke fast for the stench seemed to now permeate everything including himself.

Raines peered up at him. "For the antibiotics to take, but as soon as she contacts you to say she has Jarod, we go. I don't want this experiment to die before we get them all."

"I always thought that we needed Jarod." Lyle commented, puzzled.

"We have the baby," was Raines reply as he wheeled himself over to a small table with syringes on it.

"What about Sidney and Broots?" queried Lyle.

"What about them? We can dispose of them any time." Was his response, "They don't pose any jeopardy to us, but Parker and Jarod will if they learned of our little project." answered Raines.

Lyle just shrugged and wondered which little project; they had so many secrets, so many little projects. He wanted to know the answers, but right then the smell was so overpowering and pungent that Lyle had to get out of there and get a fresh breath of air in his lungs. Even as Lyle made his way back to his office, every breath he took smelled of rancid infection. He wondered if it would ever go away.

Unknown to them sitting in a ventilation shaft to the side of them was Angelo; in front of him was a computer with a video camera, which was downloading the whole conversation to Jarod. After finishing the download, Angelo smiled to himself and sat back.

Carnival

Somerset Pa

Parker awoke to find herself alone; the aroma of coffee waffled down to her, making her smile. She'd had a wonderful dream about strong, protective arms surrounding her last night. Finally, her mind clicked on the fact that Jarod was gone; her heart skipped a beat as panic set in. Where in the hell was he? She forced herself up and noticed that a pair of handcuffs sat on the table along with a cup of hot coffee and a note with her first name scribbled on it.

She picked it up, unfolded it and started to read:

My dearest,

I hope you are enjoying your morning coffee, there's also a peanut butter sandwich in the fridge. I left an outfit for you hanging up in the bathroom, also some mascara and lipstick. You wear too much make up, Miss Parker, and that's quite bad for the complexion. Sydney and Broots are already up and fed and are down with their pretends. Yours, my dear, is Bonnie Williams, the sister of the deceased. Check the red notebook. I told them that the ice queen was my fiancée –Bonnie Williams. I'm in the middle of my magic act, meet you at the shooting gallery in an hour and I'll give you the rest of your pretend. Maybe we can play normal people, at least for a while. If anyone asks about your brother, tell them that you know he was murdered while chasing the dragon. Knowing you, you already know what I want; you chased me long enough.

Jarod

P. S. Last night was wonderful, it proves that you have a heart and your heart is still mine.

"Last night? What in the hell happened last night? I swear to God, Jarod, I'm not going to let you play me." Parker took two steadying breaths and as she looked over the last sentence of his note, she grinned wickedly. "Well Jarod, you can't be so great in the sack if I can't even remember it." Tossing the note back down, she dismissed it as another of his lame attempts to harass her.

Parker shook her head, the only thought in her mind now was coffee and then a nice shower and some new clothes. She wondered if the 1920's dress she was wearing was just a pre-set for his little pretend. A bell went off in her mind; no, it was a test to see if they would go along, he could have chosen any clothes; the rest had gone along with Jarod's little joke, but she hadn't, maybe that's why she was getting her gun back. The others had nothing to bargain with. She gave herself a satisfactory smile. She'd won that battle. Parker finished the rest of her coffee and read over the report on Ted Williams. God, the local M.E. here was an imbecile, the petical hemorrhage alone told of death by smothering or strangulation. Jarod's notes were wonderful, easily read and straight to the point. She wondered briefly if Jarod could teach Frick and Frack to do their reports in such a neat manner.

She glanced at the first photo; there was nothing unusual, it show the outside of a trailer and not just any trailer, but the same one she was standing in. Parker felt a chill; great, from one murder house to another, no wonder she was beginning to feel at home. She tossed the first photo to the very back of the report. The second photo was labeled 'Deceased' and showed Ted Williams lying on the same small bed she'd slept on; in the photo, his head was tilted towards the window. Parker noted no blood, but his pajamas were buttoned wrong and his arms where laid across his chest. The body was resting on its back and one word came to her mind—posed---amateur. 

Another thing about the photo was the cleanliness, for a guy who had introduced all those drugs to his system, she wonder why there wasn't vomit, usually the body always tried to detoxify itself and his body wouldn't be laid out nice and clean if it had. It peaked Parker's curiosity as she fingered through the rest of the photos. There was one with a clear shot of his face. He seemed so young; his clean-shaven face was a pasty white, lips tinged in blue, a dark bruise outlining his left jaw and slight discoloring around his mouth. His eyes were colored over in light milky white, but tiny little pinpoints of blood showed in the white of the dead blue eyes.

Parker placed the photos behind the report. The rest of the documents where done by experts and within the margins were elegant handwriting, Jarod's handwriting. Parker would know his script anywhere. Parker took a sip of coffee as she read each report from autopsy to scene investigation, she mostly noted from the detective writings, "From the kitchen, which has a vinyl floor, I noticed a number of dried drops of what appeared to be gastric content-like fluid on the carpet of the living quarters. The drops were in a line, stopping in the area beside the bed where the body was found." Also this little tidbit, "In addition, a number of dead ants were noted in the cabinet below the sink in the kitchen." The next page was another examination and tests ordered on the body. Standard toxicological profile including alprazolam. 

Vitreous chemistry profile. Cyanide. Arsenic. Strychnine. Sodium monofluoroacetate (rodenticide). Lung tissue opiates. 

In basic breakdown, it was a combination of drugs from Heroin to Zanex. She skipped down the page to MICROSCOPIC EXAMINATION.

She read it all and then turned to the next page only to find another medical report. Parker glanced over Jarod's notes then took another sip of coffee. The next few pages were loaded with copies of official detective notes and interviews. 'Well, Jarod, I see you played G-man again," she said to herself. After reading all the notes, she could pretty much conclude what had happened. It's seemed that one Tracy Reed liked pretty boys, drugs and money so she'd latched on to Ted Williams, a likable young man, but stupid. He was into chasing the dragon, which she learned through reading, was a combination of drugs that were smoked, according his friends, he never shot up or ingested drugs because he had witnessed the death of a college friend from an OD and needles scared him.

He became involved with Tracy, who, in three months had sucked him dry and had decided to move on until his grandmother died and left him a little bit of money. Unfortunately, she'd already left him and he didn't want her back, but she had other ideas, she wanted the money. By then, she had a new beau, nitwit number two, who had helped her kill Ted for his money.

Since Jarod was here doing a pretend, that meant the two idiots had killed Ted for nothing because they couldn't get to the money or even find it. He needed her because Tracy had never met Bonnie.

After finishing the report, Parker got up and took a nice warm shower, washed her hair and use Jarod's tooth brush. After drying off, she looked over the clothes he had left her, blue jeans and a plaid top. "Great, little

Orphan Annie." She spoke to herself, she had no other makeup than the mascara and lipstick, do she did her lashes and lips then pulled her hair back into a ponytail. God, she felt like she was 14 again. She practically tore through his trailer looking for her shoes, her gun or the DSA, but could not find any of items. The only shoes she could find were high-heeled cowboy boots, which of course, were in her size.

She had to admit that lately her chasing Jarod was just a pretense to find out more about her mother and about the rest of her relatives. Some of it had shocked her and shaken her down to her mortal soul, if she had any left. All the revelations confused her; each safety net Jarod destroyed, altered her world forever. She realized that Jarod had, in his own way, forced her to have a change of heart. She had changed when she helped JJ and when she saw her mother's death as heroic instead of stupid and weak. So many things had changed, even Jarod, he had become a man and a man with confidence, instead of the little boy exploring the world filled with games and play. He had become more focused, more mature and understanding; there was now an undercurrent of danger, he was a man not to be messed with.

They had both changed, but every time he asked her to leave the Centre, she couldn't, it was her home, the only thing from her past that was real. She was the little girl who had sneaked through the air vents with her few friends. When she was at boarding school, it had been the Centre she wanted to go home to and now it was the new little Parker that she had to protect and like it or not, Sydney and Broots, plus an added bonus was that with her as the hunter, she could guarantee Jarod's safety. She no longer cared if she brought Jarod back, deep inside her, she was glad that he was free to find his family. There were times that she loved Jarod and hated him at the same time. A tear slipped down her cheek, she quickly brushed it away and took one last look in the bathroom mirror. A version of herself that she hadn't seen for a long time stared back. She smashed her hand into it, shattering the bathroom mirror. She peered into the shattered fragments, he wanted Bonnie Williams and he'd get Bonnie Williams then they could go back to their own survival. The Centre had taught her how to play the game, a game of survival from hunter to pretender. One thing Parker wondered about was why Jarod always took the hard way; it would have been easier and faster interviewing people with her gun instead of pretense, but she had given Jarod her word. It did help a little that he still had her gun. The lab rat was always complicating her life.

Parker couldn't help but feel a certain kinship to Bonnie, here was a woman who had been told that her only brother had killed himself, instead he had been murdered and no one believed her. She was fighting an uphill battle with the authorities, which didn't want the case reopened. God, Jarod was turning her into a freaking little Miss Goody Two Shoes. At least she'd get her gun back. She checked Jarod's notes on Bonnie; she seemed easygoing, very warm, intelligent and obsessed with her brother's death. Parker took a deep breath as she exited the trailer as Bonnie Williams. She slowly made her way though the throngs of people, some dressed in elaborate costumes and some in just regular clothes. Parker thought of her mother as she walked, knowing that Bonnie's mind would be on her brother. As she passed one of the stalls, she saw Broots dressed in jeans with a bright Hawaiian shirt. He seemed preoccupied with tossing balls at coke bottles and doing a rather shoddy job at it. 'Typical geek,' she thought to herself.

Nearing the shooting gallery, Parker saw Jarod leaning against the post, but he wasn't alone, a tall, leggy blonde wearing nothing but a swimsuit was with him, one hand swinging in the breeze and the other clinging to Jarod's forearm in an almost death grip. Parker knew instantly that it was Tracy Reed. The photograph had been kind; cheap, blonde, floozy fit her to a tee. Parker plastered on a phony smile as she approached them. 

"Aren't you going to introduce me to your little arm bracelet?" Parker asked as she ran her hand up Jarod's chest, liking the reaction she got; it was between shock and embarrassment. Parker smiled seductively at him. 

When he finally composed himself, he said. "Hmmm… This is Tracy Reed."

"Jarod has told me so much about you, Tracy. It's so nice to meet the girl my fiancée," Parker gave him a killer glance, "tells me has a single digit IQ."

Jarod winced at that last statement then smiled. 'She's jealous.' He realized and grinned even wider.

"Jarod is sweet like that, isn't he?" The blonde giggled.

"Oh yes, Jarod is, since he doesn't have the capability to introduce us, I'm Bonnie Williams, Ted's sister. It's nice to see that," Parker glanced at Tracy's arm, which was wrapped tightly around Jarod's, "you've move on after my brother's murder."


	3. a dance we do part 3

A Dance We Do 3  
  
By: Dee and Dianne Beta read by Dianne  
  
Legal disclaimer: The recognizable characters of the TV-show 'The Pretender' doesn't belong to me but to MTM, NBC, TNT Television and 20th Century Fox. I just borrowed them. This story was only written and published for my pleasure and that of other fans. I don't pursue any financial interests whatsoever. No copyright infringement is intended.  
  
********************  
  
Centre  
  
Lyle moved forward, resting one elbow on his desk as his secretary sat on the edge smiling down at him. He put down the Chinese food he was eating and leaned forward, using the chop stick, which he had just taken out of his mouth, he ran the end of it slowly up Ming Lin's arm. He gave her a secret, sensual smile.  
  
"Ming Lin, you are so delightful, I could eat you right up." Lyle purred as he ran the chopstick up her slender neck and then under her chin, pushing it up a little and biting into the flesh underneath her chin. As he pulled her face towards his, the phone rang loudly, interrupting him. Lyle stopped, made a huffing noise and dropped the chop stick, his eyes never leaving Ming Lin's dark ones as he pick up the receiver.  
  
"Lyle here," he spoke slowly into the phone.  
  
"Lyle, we're ready to test out our boy, get down here now!" Raines' voice hissed over the phone.  
  
The words "Yes, Master" formed in his mind and by the time he'd collected his errant thoughts together, Raines had slammed the phone down.  
  
"I have to go." Lyle said, more to himself than to Ming Lin as he hung up the phone. Looking at Ming, he gave her an inescapable errant smile and softly said, "Business calls."  
  
Lyle stood and took one step then turned and cupping Ming's chin, ran his good thumb over the smooth skin of her cheek. He smiled and releasing Ming's chin, leaned over his desk, pulled his coat from the back of the plush chair and swung it over his shoulder. He gave her one last smile and chuckled quietly to himself as he noted the disappointment he saw in those dark eyes of hers.  
  
As soon as Lyle made it out of his office, he went straight to the elevator and unconsciously pulled a handkerchief from his pocket. He wondered to himself who smelled worst, the skeletal Raines or the rotting, infected creature from the black lagoon that Raines called Danny. Lyle shuddered as the elevator doors opened. He gave Raines a smile while his mind wondered when the SOB was going to really die so he could take over the Centre. As for Daddy Parker dearest, accidents happened every day. Lyle was brought out of his introspection by Raines' voice  
  
"Stop standing there smiling like an idiot! We have work to do!" His words were wheezy and harsh.  
  
********************  
  
Carnival Somerset Pa  
  
Jarod watched as Parker AKA Bonnie stood her ground, giving Tracy a cold look. Tracy seemed to melt into Jarod's side, clinging with a death like grip to his forearm, causing him to wince in momentary pain. After a quick glance over at Parker, Jarod admitted to himself that if Tracy wasn't a killer he could feel sorry for her.  
  
Tracy, still clinging to Jarod, took a step back and behind him, her voice small and shaky. "Your brother, I tried to get him to stop, but he wouldn't. I'm so sorry."  
  
Parker made a huffing sound and took a step towards Tracy, placing her face right in front of hers. In a cold, deadly voice, Parker whispered to her. "I know you killed him and you're going to pay." She gave Tracy another cold look then turned her eyes to the hand on Jarod's arm and hissed. "He's mine, so get your hands off him or I'll break both your arms. I don't share!"  
  
Parker's voice was so deadly and so earnest that it sent shivers throughout Jarod's system. He wondered briefly if Parker was that good of an actress or did she really consider him to be hers. He had to shake off his surging hormones, which were causing him to forget what he was doing here. Jarod moved his body between the two and facing Parker, gave her a wink, her eyes were still narrowed and her mouth a straight line then her eyes seemed to shoot arrows as they went straight to where Tracy had been holding on to him.  
  
Jarod was about to say something, but Parker stepped right into his chest, her chest pressed tightly against his own. He could hardly breathe with her upturned face staring straight into his and her body pressed against his like that. Her voice was still low, still deadly, "Next time I see your little overly made up carnival trinket, you won't stop me from getting answers about how she killed my brother." With the word brother, Parker's lips lightly brushed against his. It took every bit of his strength not to grab her and kiss her, feel her. Jarod shook his head as Parker spun on her heel and stalked slowly away from him.  
  
One thing clicked into his mind. He was the moth, she was the flame and she had just seared him. It took him a second to pull himself together as he heard the soft, weak crying of Tracy behind him. Jarod turned towards the crying woman and she threw herself into his arms, pressing her body against his. He rested his head on top of Tracy's, letting her cry on his shoulder. His face showed no emotion as he lowered his head to hers and whispered into her hair. "It's okay, it's okay."  
  
********************  
  
Parker knew that Jarod eyes weren't looking at her walking away from him. Her body shivered slightly as the memory of the soft accidental graze of her lips against his tantalized her. The strong arousal that threatened to overcome her left her breathless, senseless and frustrated. She had to get Jarod out of her system; she needed to purify herself of him and the heated lust that couldn't be satisfied. "God," Parker said softly and shook her head; she needed to go shoot something to work off the high level of frustration. She walked to the far end of the shooting gallery, tossed in a quarter and picked up the small plastic rifle. She frowned for a minute, her mind resting on her missing gun then she lined up the toy rifle, locked onto a target and started shooting. She didn't miss one.  
  
Meanwhile, Jarod was still comforting Tracy. "It's okay," he said into Tracy's hair. Slowly she pulled away from him. Tears glistened in her eyes, but Jarod noted that her cheeks and under her eyes were dry.  
  
Her voice was soft and quivering, "I didn't do anything." Her eyes pleaded for belief.  
  
"I know, it's just Bonnie, she can be maddening." He whispered back, his hand gently caressing Tracy's shoulder.  
  
"I don't see how someone as wonderful as you can be with that woman." She whined.  
  
Jarod looked down on the ground for a second and feigning a hurt little boy look nodded and looked into Tracy eyes. As he ran his other hand through his hair, he said, "I don't know either."  
  
Tracy nodded gently in complete understanding as her hand came up and tenderly touched Jarod's face, a sympathetic smile dancing on her slightly parted lips. Jarod pretended then that those lips belonged to Parker and that she was inviting him to taste her. He closed his eyes and thought of Parker as he brought his lips down on Tracy's. The kiss started out softly, but soon turned deeper, more needful and more lustful, as if he couldn't get enough. Tracy could hardly breathe as Jarod gently let her go, dropping his arms down to his side and opening his eyes he paused for a split second.  
  
"This can't happen, Bonnie would kill me. If only I had some money to get away from her." He stated despondently to Tracy then traced his finger on Tracy's lips and looked deeply into her eyes before he spoke again. "I'd better go find Bonnie and calm her down." As he turned to walk away, Tracy grabbed his hand in hers and gave it a little squeeze. Jarod turned around, his eyes downcast, "I'm sorry." He stated as he pulled his hand out of hers.  
  
********************  
  
Following the same path that Parker had taken earlier, he was only a few feet away when he saw a small group circling a shooter at the gallery. He caught only a few words.  
  
"That woman, man, can she shoot!"  
  
"$20.00 on her hitting the next five."  
  
Jarod grinned broadly. Parker. It could only be Parker. He slowly walked over to crowd and inched his way through. There stood Parker; her shooting stance impeccable. He gave a low whistle; she was good, too good to have missed shooting him all those times. Jarod felt his body warm at the thought that she had aimed to miss him; maybe, just maybe, she felt more for him than she would admit. Jarod switched into his FBI mode and with a swagger to his step and radiating confidence, stepped up to the plastic gun beside hers. He placed his quarter into the slot and after catching Parker's eyes, mirrored her stance then started to shoot with a quiet determination. 


End file.
